You Make Me Smile
by weonlyliveoncesometimes
Summary: He's had a hell of a night but Felicity will always be able to make him smile.


I don't own 'Arrow'. I do wish I could be friends with Felicity and smack Oliver on the upside of his head occasionally. I don't own the song lyrics to 'You Make Me Smile' either, they belong to the wonderfully talented Aloe Blacc. Check it out. The song makes me smile. (Pun may be intended.)

As always, please enjoy!

* * *

_When I'm sinking, oh, you come through and lift me  
It's nothing more then the love that you give me  
Keeps me from drowning in tears  
_

It's been a hell of a night.

Oliver feels exhaustion seeping into his bones as he limps slowly back to his bike, the freezing winter wind whipping through the leather of his jacket and pushing the exhaustion even deeper.

He'd like to think that he could have been talked out of going after their target tonight especially given the day of meetings he'd had and the three hours of sleep he'd had the night before.

But they'd all known that they'd have one shot at the man behind one of the largest Ponzi schemes in Starling and Oliver has gritted his teeth, pulled on the hood and headed out. He'd expected to simply terrify the man as Felicity laid the electronic trail for the police and sent Lance the signal to move in.

Oliver had been looking forward to it, in a way. It had seemed like an easier job than normal right up until he'd come face to face with two bodyguards built like Diggle with guns they weren't afraid to use.

Oliver's side had been grazed in the subsequent struggle and suddenly the relatively easy night turned to hell and, to top it all off, he'd lost communication with Felicity during the fight and that is _never_ a good thing.

Oliver knows he's going to get yelled at when he returns to the foundry. Felicity dislikes a lot of things he does but breaking a comm? A lot of the time, it's enough to earn her loud voice because breaking any sort of technology hurts something in her, apparently.

So, yep, his night had gone to hell and it was likely going to drop further past hell when he returns to the foundry.

Oliver reaches his bike and grits his teeth as he swings his leg over the bike and brings the bike to life with a roar.

The wind is even more brutal on the bike and Oliver just hopes that he reaches the foundry before he freezes to death.

Oliver knows that it isn't going to happen, he knows that he won't freeze to death in this wind because he's been colder. He's also had far worse injuries and fought harder than he had tonight. He's been in situations where he's had no back up to turn to and no choice but to stitch his wound up and fight the demons in his head as he relives the earlier events of the night.

He's faced worse enemies in Slade Wilson and Malcolm Merlyn and he _knows_ he has been in worse situations with absolutely no way to take the good out of them and no reason to smile.

Its just tonight is one of those nights where it just feels on par with those nightmarish nights on Lian Yu or when Slade had decided to terrorize Starling.

It doesn't take him long to reach the foundry and he's careful as he gets off his bike, leaving it next to Felicity's car and forcing himself not to limp as he slips into the club and makes his way down to the basement.

The foundry is warmer than outside and still does nothing for the cold that cut through his jacket. It's bright lights blind him for a second and he grunts a little as he reaches the bottom step and reaches up to pull back his hood.

The grunt is in no way connected to his side or the cold but an announcement that he'd arrived back.

Diggle is the first to approach him with the only slightly infuriating omniscient look that says he knows _all _about what a horrible night it's been and has little sympathy reserved for him.

Oliver really hates that look sometimes.

"Had to happen tonight, did it? Couldn't have waited until next week." He asks even as he takes Oliver's bow and quiver off him. "Maybe if we'd waited you wouldn't have broken the comm."

Oliver eyes him for a second. "It broke during the fight. Did Lance make the arrest?"

"Whatever you say, Oliver. Yes. He made the arrest and was so pleased with all the information on his computer. Amazing for someone who's gotten away with it for years to have kept it all on his personal computer. Think he would have been smarter than that." Diggle answers him with only a slight smirk at whatever it was Lance had said that had prompted the answer.

"Oh, he was smarter than that, alright. He kept it on his work computer. Which makes way more sense." A new voice breaks in before Oliver can reply and he turns to the blond whirlwind that is looking at him and frowning.

Felicity eyes him critically as she walks barefoot over to where the two men are standing and – despite the look on her face that says she's not happy with him – Oliver feels himself relax at the sight of her.

He takes a moment to simply appreciate the way she looks as she approaches. The woolen red dress that clings to every curve and the slick ponytail speak of business even as the lack of shoes detract from the image she's projecting.

Before he can say anything Felicity eyes him and then shakes her head. "That's the fifth one you've broken, Oliver. In as many months. What is wrong with you? Are you going through some I-hate-technology cycle or something? Before this you managed to break three phones and don't get me started on the laptops and – you're injured, aren't you?"

Apparently, he hasn't hidden the wound as well as he thought even as Felicity huffs impatiently and points towards the miniscule bathroom she'd installed when she'd redone the foundry years ago.

She raises an eyebrow at him when he doesn't move and Oliver is contemplating not doing what she's silently telling him to do. But he's had a hell of a night and arguing with Felicity will probably just add to it.

So, he does what he's told.

Diggle's slight cough and almost imperceptible shake of his head, helps him make the decision too. Oliver knows Digg is more likely to throw him under the bus where Felicity is concerned except when it will upset her more than she already is.

So Oliver finds himself moving past Felicity and toward the bathroom with a grunt. He's reaching up to yank the zipper of his hood down when he feels Felicity's hand slide over his forearm and squeeze.

It's her comforting, I-know-it's-been-a-horrible-night-but-listen-to-me squeeze and Oliver feels his lips tick upward at it.

Nothing gets past Felicity.

Twenty minutes later, Oliver feels slightly warmer and walks out of the bathroom, sweatshirt in hand, to find Digg nowhere insight and Felicity standing by the medical table. Oliver knows that the graze is just that, a graze. It doesn't need stitches and he's pretty sure, if he's lucky, it won't scar.

Still, he knows that saying any of that is a moot point so when Felicity looks up – her glasses sliding down her nose and her eye brightening when she sees him – and holds out her left hand, Oliver can do nothing but take it.

Their fingers entwine and, before he sits down on the chair so she can tend his wound, he pulls her towards him and leans down to press his forehead to hers.

It's been a hell of a night but Oliver feels himself relax as Felicity makes a small, pleased noise in the back of her throat at his affection.

His eyes close and Oliver finds himself concentrating on the feel of the smooth platinum band against the skin of his hand. The ring hasn't been there that long but Oliver is sure that it will stay exactly where it is for a very long time to come.

It had taken him too long to be with Felicity and because of that, he is more determined than ever to make up for that lost time by making sure they have years. It had taken him a long time since coming back from Lian Yu to work through the mess that was his head and tightrope he'd walked between not caring if he died and caring enough to not die.

Oliver hadn't wanted to really _live_ for a long time until the day he'd woken on the cold metal table to Felicity's tearstained face and death grip on his hand.

He'd been in that situation before, he'd woken up to see no-one hovering over him, there had been times where there wasn't anyone worried that this time he was going to die. Hell, Felicity had been in that situation with him plenty of times before.

But it was different that time. Opening his eyes and seeing her face, seeing the way her eyes had lit as she realized he was awake changed everything, it changed something in _him_.

He'd barely been able to say anything and his whole body had felt incredibly heavy but Oliver remembers he'd watched her eyes light up and he'd smiled and the world had changed.

"You know, this can't be very good for your neck. It's okay if I'm wearing heels cause then I'm not, like a head and a half shorter than you. Is that right? Am I a head and a half shorter than you? 'Cause that means you're tying yourself to a short person for the rest of your life. Are you alright with that?" Felicity's question makes him snort in amusement and Oliver opens her eyes to find her smiling back at him.

"I like your height. Its one of your many, many good qualities." He tells her and straightens to settle himself against the table so Felicity can apply antiseptic and a bandage to his wound.

"Ooh. Good answer. Saying stuff like that is one of your better qualities." Felicity says as she begins to swab the wound and Oliver clenches his jaw at the sting.

He's stopped shouting 'ow' when she fixes his wounds now because it doesn't earn him that much sympathy from her anymore.

"Only one of my better qualities? What other qualities do I have which are just 'better'?" Oliver asks, watching as her brow furrows as she smooth's the tape over the gauze she's applied.

"Oh, you know, being sort of clean, you're five o'clock shadow, remembering not to touch any of the electronics at home. Things like that. You're even handy." Felicity informs him, letting her hand rest on his hipbone as she looks at him. "Then there's the fact that you always get the bill and, well, your body could be considered a quality, right?"

Oliver raises an eyebrow. "Can I consider your body a good quality, if it's one of mine?"

"No. Because we all know you love me for my brains, Mr Queen." Felicity smirks at him even as she moves away to shut down the computers for the night.

Oliver pulls on his sweatshirt and zips it up, watching his fiancé move around the foundry as she collects her coat and the shoes she'd kicked off earlier. Clearly, she's decided that it's time for them to go home and Oliver can't say he disagrees.

If there's one thing he learned about Starling City, it's that the crime will always be there tomorrow.

"Can we get pizza on the way home? I know that we had dinner earlier but…I _really_ want peperoni pizza. With extra sauce. I've been craving it for days. Well, not days because I wanted Indian the other night so badly I threatened Digg, so maybe I've only want it for a few hours but lets stop. You can even lecture me on having dinner again, if you want." Felicity offers, leaning to one side as she slides one of her shoes on.

Oliver can't help it, he's had a hell of a night and he's tired and really, he should be in a terrible mood.

But she's standing there, asking for pizza and pushing her glasses up her nose wearing the ring he'd given her and she makes him smile.

Felicity raises an eyebrow at him as he reaches out to catch her waist and pull her flush against him. Her arms twine around his neck automatically and she smiles up at him as he looks down.

"You know what your best quality is?" He asks her softly and she tilts her head with a shrug.

"My inability to keep my foot out of my mouth?"

Oliver smiles again, dipping to press a kiss to her mouth and enjoying the way her breath catches every so slightly.

"You make me smile, Felicity." Oliver tells her quietly, kissing her once more. "You just make me smile."

Felicity grins up at him and Oliver finds himself kissing her again, sinking into it and spinning it out just because he can.

It's been a hell of a night but Felicity, he knows, will always be able to pull a smile from him.

_You make me smile  
You make me smile  
In a very special way_

* * *

So, I'm not entirely sure I like this. I haven't figured it out yet. I just liked the idea of Oliver having a bad night and Felicity making him smile. Fun fact, I didn't start writing this intending them to be engaged, either. Originally, I was just going to make them still friends-that-are-so-much-more but then, apparently, they're engaged. So, let me know what you think!

Also, I am working on a sequel to 'The Four Times Felicity Meets the Hood'. Depending on a lot of things - i.e. real life work and university course work - I will hopefully have written a majority of it on the weekend. So, fingers crossed that's out soon.

I hope you liked it and the unabashed fluff this turned out to be!


End file.
